Closure and its support



May 17 i927.

B, C. WEBSTER CLOSURE AND ITS SUPPORT Filed July5, 1923 2 Sheets iihet 1 :NVENTOR 5872 [242 51 02 6T Mser M/17M I ATTORNEY Patented May 17, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BENJAMIN C. WEBSTER, SOUTHPORT, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO COLUMBIA PHONOGRAPH COMPANY, INC., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

Application fi'IedJuly 3,

This invention relates to closure means and method, and the embodiment disclosed as illustrative of the broad invention is for closures for sound-passages of phonographs of the cabinet type.

An object of this invention'is to provide improved closure means for sound-passages.

Another object is to provide a closure means for sound-passages which forms a multi-barrier against the issue of sound.

A further object is to provide a combined shutter and door structure for controlling the passage of sound from sound-passages.

Another object is to provide a door, panel, or the like, in a cabinet (or other container) so-thatthe door may be converted into a rest, or shelf, extending outwardly from the cabinet; and to make the door self-sustaining in its outwardly-extending, or shelf-like, position.

A still further object is to provide improved mounting meansfor the-.door or the like, to permit it to he slid into the cabinet when out of use.

Yet another object is to provide an improved form or" disappearing door or panel.

Another object is to conceal shutter-like, volume-reducing means for sound-passages, when out of use.

Another object is to provide means, where by the door, in its movement to closed position, automatically closes the shutters.

And a still furtherobject is to mount a sliding door or panel, so'that it will freely slide, and not bind when carelessly pushed or pulled.

. Finally, an object is to provide a simple and economically-made hinge for the door. Other objects will hereinafter'appear.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1-is a perspective view of part of a phonograph'cabinet of the console type.

showing the shutter mechanism open, and

a door or panel extending outwardly'from lOI'IIlStiLIlCG, the console, period models are the cabinet and forming ashelf.

, Fig. 2 isa' transverse sectional view of a cabinet showingthe door in closed position,

and the shutters closed; and also indicating several of the positions of the door in dotted lines. 7 p 7 Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the hinge mechanism itself, as shownapplied to the doorin Fig. 2.

Fig. at is a fragmentary seotionalyiew,

CLOSURE AND ITS SUPPORT.

192a. Serial No. 649,257.

drawings, and which is used According to this invention, the volume of sound emittedis controlled and varied by a plurality-of shutters 14 (three in the form shown), and each of these is mounted-across the mouth or outlet end of the soundpassage 12 to swing about a horizontal axis from a closed--position (shown in solid lines in Fig. 2), where they lie in a vertical plane, to an open position (Fig. 1), vinwhich,

from a horizontal plane for a purposeto be hereinafter described. For this purpose, the

shutters are mounted on trunnions 15 (Fig. 2) in a frame 16 surrounding the mouth of the sound-passage and suitably secured to the cabinet. The shutters are caused to move together in parallel by a suit-able link 17 interconnecting an arm 18, secured to each shutter. v A tongue 19 on each of the lower shutters rests in a notch 20 on the'shutter .when fully opened, they are tilted up slightly directly above it when the shutters are closed, so that no opening is left between them for passage of sound. The shutters may bemoved by hand, or if ,desired, by suitable distant operating means not shown). Theqshutter-frame 16 is I11011I lt6Cl between a transverse panel 21' (Fig. 1) above it. and a transverse strip 22 below it upon which it is supportech Certain-types of phonograph cabinets very carefully designed and made soas to faithfully follow along the. lines of classic to view,-this is not possible, because the 'visible, transverse meeting lines'of the shutters have no-design counterpart in the furniture above referred to.

To permit the use ofshutters-eso essential to sound contro=lwithout impairing the beauty or design of the cabinet, this invention provides a door 23 outside of the shut ters for entirely concealing them when the phonograph is out of use.

This door 23 (Fig. 2) is mounted upon a pair of hinges (Fig. 3) located near the bottom edge of the door, and carried by blocks 25 (Fig. 2) mounted in the cabinet. The hinges turn upon horizontal pivot pins and so, the door may be swung from its open position, shown in Fig. 1, upwardly toward the cabinet and in front of the shutter 14 (Fig. 2), thus concealing them from view. In its closed position, the door, closely fitting against the frame 16, forms substantially an unbroken front, and appears as a verticallypivoted door, to match the usual recordcompartment door 26 at the other side of the cabinet, which door is truly verticallypivote'd.

In addition to concealing the shutters, the door 23 may be used as a shelf when'it is swung downwardly and forwardly on its hinge (Fig. 3) to the open position shown in Fig. 1. The door is self-sustaining in this position by reason of the construction of its hinge, which includes a member 27 (Figsy2 and 3) secured to the door by means of screws 28 and having an apertured ear 29. This receives the pin 30 on an arm 31 in tegral with the other member 32 of the hinge, which member is secured to the block 25 "by screws 33, the arm 31 protruding beyond the edge of the block.

To support the door in horizontal position, an offset, or bent portion 34: (Fig. 3) of the member 32 engages a stoparm 35 on the member 27, to prevent further downward movement after the door reaches the position shown in Fig. 1. The pivot pin 30 of the hinge (Figs. 2 and 3) is positioned, as far as possible, away from the inner end of the door, but very close to the transverse strip 22; while the operative end of the stoparm 35 is arranged as close as possible to the hinged end of the door, so that suflicient leverage is provided to make a positive and substantial seat for the door. A cross-bar 36 (Fig. 2), located directly below the door, is gougcd out at 37 to permit the swinging movement of the door-corner 38. This is done so that a large unsightly clearance space will not appear between the door and the cross-bar, the gouged portion 37 being concealed from view by the doorwhen both in its open and closed positions. Preferably, the door is rabbeted to receive the hinge member 27 and conceal it from view.

The arrangement is such that the door, in

' closing, afterit passes an intermediate posit'ion shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, will v cause the shutters 14: to close," if they should happen to be open. This operation is performed by the door directly engaging the outward edge of the lower shutter. to close it as the door is closed. This, through the link 17, causes the other shutters to also close. The shutters, when open, are at such an acuteangle to the door that it willha-ve a smooth, cam-like action upon the lower shutter in closing, and will not abruptly strike it, which might cause the shutters to be broken, or one or both parts to be scratched.

To absorb any shock accompanying the closing of the door, and to hold the hinged end of the door in the position shown in Fig. l, a pair of anti-abrasion bumpers 39 which the door engages is provided in the tlal'lSVOlSQ strip 22. closed position by a pair of spring detents, having cooperating members 40 in the frame-work of the cabinet and in the door.

At times, it is not desired to use the door 23 as a shelf, and so that it may move out of the way, the door is slidable into a pocket ll in the cabinet. To accommodate this sliding movement, the blocks 25 (Fig. 2) which, it will be remembered, carry the door, are movably guided by the floor 42 of the cabinet and by tracks 43 secured to the cabinet body above and parallel with the floor. The blocks 25, which thusform a carriage for the door, are guided in their movement back and forth by tongues i l riding in the slots 45 in the floor 42. Both the blocks 25 and the tongues &4; are made sufliciently long, so that slight inaccuracies or irregularities, in the manufacture .of the parts guiding and supporting them, will not cause thern to am when the door is pushed or pulled carelessly. As best shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the blocks 25 and the guiding means thereforare arranged adjacent the sides of the amplifier chamber.

If it is desired to merely move the door to a position where it is out of the way, it may be left in the horizontal dotted-line position shown in Fig. 2. If, however, it is desired to entirely conceal the door, it may be pushed farther. into the cabinet to a point where it'will vdisappear 'its edge 46 (Fig. 4), only, protruding beyond the cross-piece 16, so that the door can be grasped by the fingers and pulled outwardly when desired; the door is cut out at l7 to form a fingerhold for this purpose. Y

The tongues l4: engage the front and back end-walls of the slots 4-5 to limit the outer and inner positions of the door.

The door has a handle or'knob {9 (Fig. 1-), by means of which it is moved, and this is located in a cut-out 50., so that the exposed end of the knob does not interfere with the disappearing movement of the door.

To prevent scratching of the high-polish of the door, the space (Fig. 2), between the transverse strip 22 and the strip- 36ofthe cabinet, is such that neither face of the door The dooris held in contacts with the strips in the sliding movements.

It should be understood that the shutter and door structure maybe used not only in a sound-passage for phonographs, which is only one of its uses, but also, in any kind of closure; that in certain aspects of the invention, the door may be pivoted to move about a vertical axis; and, that the supporthinge for the door may be used for doors, lids, and other movably supported means.

Variations and modifications may be used, and portions of the improvements may be used without others, so long as comprehended in the scope of the appended claims.

Having now described the invention, what is claimed as new and for which Letters Patcut ofthe United Statesis desired is:

1. In a cabinet having an openlng, a door,

and a carriage in the cabinet on which the door is pivotally mounted and with which it slides, the carriage being of greater thickness than said door and holding the same in spaced relation to the cabinet and objects contained therein.

2. In a cabinet having an opening, a door, a carriage in the cabinet on which the door is pivotally mounted and with which it slides, the carriage being of greater thickness than said door and holding the same in spaced relation to the cabinet and objects contained therein, and a guide secured to the carriage and projecting into a guide-way in the cabinet. 4

3. In asound amplifier, the combination of a cabinet having a sound passageopening in a wall thereof, a plurality of pivoted closures mounted by the cabinet at said vopening for regulating the volume of sound mounted by the cabinet on pivots arranged at said opening and parallel to the pivots ofsaid closures, said panel adapted when in one position to conceal said closures and acting through engagement with one of said closures to move it to a closed position as said panel is moved to its position aforesaid.v

of greater thickness than the door, and said connecting means supporting the door inthe plane of the carriage with its lower surface disposed above the lower surface of the carriage whereby the door will not contact with the bottom of the pocket.

5. In a cabinet having an opening, a door for said opening, said cabinet having a pocket below said opening, a carriage within the pocket and slidable on the floor thereof, the floor of said cabinet having an elongated slot therein and an elongated block on said carriage shorter than said slot and entering it to guide the carriage and limit the move ment thereof, means secured to a wall of the pocket and projecting above the carriage to T prevent vertical movement thereof, and means connecting the door to the carriage whereby thedoor may be moved into and out of the pocket, the door being guided and g 7 limited in such movement by the carriage.

Signed at Bridgeport, in the county of F airfield and State of Connecticut, this 2nd day of July, A; D. 1923.

BENJAMIN o. WEBSTER. 

